The purpose of this study was to survey public preferences for dining space image styles depending on the types of passage rites in Korea and to determine potential differences in public preferences for dining space image styles depending on the types of passage rites in terms of various general characteristics such as gender, age, family type, and preference for the image and color styles of the dining space. As a result, this study determined the following: According to a public preference survey of dining space image styles depending on the type of passage rites, our respondents showed the highest preference for casual images (27.1%) at a party for a 100-day-old baby. Additionally, our respondents showed the highest preference for casual images (27.4%) when celebrating a baby's first birthday but showed the highest preference for romantic images (35.8%) when celebrating a baby girl's first birthday. Our respondents showed the highest preference for casual images (21.4%) for graduation ceremonies. Our respondents showed the highest preference for classic images (21.7%) at coming-of-age ceremonies for new adult men, but also showed highest preference for elegant images (26.2%) at coming-of-age ceremonies for new adult women. Moreover, the respondents showed highest preference for classic images (41.0%) at traditional wedding ceremonies but elegant images (24.1%) at modern wedding ceremonies. In contrast, the respondents showed highest preference for classic images (31.3%) for a 60th birthday party. The highest preference for classic images (28.9%) was found for a diamond wedding ceremony. Respondents showed highest preference for classic images (30.4%) for a funeral ceremony Finally, our respondents showed highest preference for classic images (32.5%) at memorial services (religious ceremonies).

In this study, we attempted to elucidate the cultural characteristics of Korean food based on a traditional understanding on the Korean novel. To achieve this, food characteristics related to 'rites of passage' were analyzed in the representative Korean literary work "Hon-bool", which describes the life of a first-son's wife every three generations in the going to ruin but historic 'Lee's family of Maean district' family and the life of the common 'Geomeong-gul' people who lived with farming on the Lee's land at Namwon of Junbook province in the 1930~1940s, during the Japanese Colonial rule. Every nation possesses rites of passage at important points in life, such as at birth, age of majority, wedding and death. Korean culture, in particular, has several memorial rites relating to birth, death and passage into the afterlife in which special foods are prepared. In this manner, ceremonial foods represent the Korean peoples' traditional vision of the universe and life. The book "Hon-bool" describes these traditions. Especially, the book describes the table-settings related to the main character's childbirth, first birthday, wedding and death. Therefore "Hon-bool" represents a living history of Korean traditional food and the work of storytelling through the traditional understanding is expected that perform an important role in making of cultural contents of Korean foods.